The squat jerk is the rarest and most spectacular jerk variation: instead of splitting, you receive the bar overhead in a full deep squat. It requires extraordinary shoulder, thoracic and ankle mobility plus rock-solid overhead stability - in exchange, you barely need to elevate the bar at all. A handful of world-class lifters (famously Chinese weightlifters) use it in competition. For everyone else, it's a fantastic mobility and stability developer even at light loads.
| Level (x Bodyweight) | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| beginner | 0.4x | 0.25x |
| novice | 0.65x | 0.42x |
| intermediate | 0.95x | 0.65x |
| advanced | 1.25x | 0.88x |
| elite | 1.55x | 1.1x |
1RM as a multiple of bodyweight.
Earn it before you load it: you need a comfortable overhead squat at meaningful weight first. Grip slightly wider than your jerk grip, receive with an aggressive punch-up into the bar, and ride the squat down with the bar stacked over your mid-foot. Any bar path deviation you'd survive in a split jerk will dump the bar here - it is unforgiving by design. Program it light and often rather than heavy and rarely.
Progression: overhead squats, then tall jerks and push jerks with a pause in a deepening catch, then light squat jerks. If mobility blocks the bottom position, this lift will wait - work overhead squats first.
Enter your 1RM above to see your training percentages.
Log every result, see your progress over time, and know exactly where you stand.